How important is it and how well are you using it?
Marketing impact: [rating=5]
Our commentary: Now well into its third year, blended (or Universal) search is now a widely accepted & expected part of search result pages.
But is it really important? Has it improved user experience? Are businesses using it to to improve performance & engage potential customers?
First and foremost for those who are unaware of the term blended search let me explain. Search Engines for the last 3 years (at least) have refined their search results pages to enable different types of content to be displayed within the results. More often than not this will be, news, video or images.
Universal results can however include products, twitter / Facebook, forum discussions, maps & more. A good example, shown in the image to the right (each…
How can you tailor them for your business?
Marketing Importance: [rating=4]
Our commentary
In case your wondering what Site Links are, they are the additional blue links to deeper pages in the site listed under the main domain name, often displayed for a brand search.
See Smart Insights Google Site Links
The Google reason behind Sitelinks
This article has to be mainly based on speculation and reverse engineering the sites that do have SiteLinks since Google don't explicitly explain Sitelinks.
To understand sitelinks you should start with the official Google explanation on Google site Links although all they really say is that they are created automatically!
Note that Google now enables you to selectively switch off some Sitelinks within its Webmaster tools facility
Google engineer Matt Cutts gives a little…
Significant new feature will change clickthrough rates
This week, Google recently launched an update to its search results page (SERP) which allows visitors to preview a website within the results page before making the decision to click-through.
The update currently only affects Natural Search listings but it is a useful tool for Google users and reports from Google themselves are saying searchers are 5% more likely to be satisfied with the result they click after using the preview.
So our recommendation is to check out what happens when you press the magnifying button next to your listing for your brand search.
Here is an example from the excellent analysis by Simple Usability on the Impact of Google Instant Previews on user behaviour - a must read for all online marketers.
According to Google, if you get this right you could expect up to…
SEOMOZ Industry Report
Value: [rating=3]
Our commentary: I don't believe SEOMOZ will require much of an introduction these days but I felt there recently released Industry survey results deserved a quick mention. They're of particular interest to SEO specialists working for companies or agencies.
The survey covers the international market place and gives great insight into how people work within the search industry and budget investment in SEO.
Well worth a scan, checkout the results and great infographic:
Recommended link: SEO Industry Survey…
Google Algorithm Update?
Value: [rating=4] Our commentary: A vicious rumour or is Google preparing to launch an algorithm update during the festive season? It wouldn't be the first time Google has launched an update during one of the busiest times of the year. Reading between the lines of various search engine marketing forums and viewing clients analytics data something is definitely happening with the largest search engine in the world. Usually the type of fluctuations in traffic people have been seeing only occurs before large updates are rolled out. Google had until last year quite consistently launched algorithm update every Xmas the most famous update being the Florida update which caused widespread issues with lots of businesses online. We have obviously already had a large update this year when Google rolled out Caffeine which according to "experts" at the time was going to cause problems to lots of sites…
Alerting you to 3 new tools: link profiles, query parameters and search CTR changes
Value: [rating=5]
Our commentary: As a Digital Marketer, it's great to see companies like Google offering free well featured tools to allow you to manage your web presence through them. Google Webmaster tools while still basic is constantly evolving and this month is no different.
Over the last week Google has announced several improvements to existing features, the first being the "links to your site" area, the second is an improvement to identifying / managing query parameters on your website & last but not least updates to the search queries report.
1 Links to your website:
While it is still a very basic feature (when compared to Open Site Explorer & Majestic SEO for example) this upgrade does offer great insights to your back links, from volume of links to specific pages through to anchor text analysis. See the full…
Google Webmaster Tools - A guide for marketers and site owners
What is Google Webmaster tools (GWT)
Google Webmaster Tools is a system built by Google that gives you feedback on your website from how Google sees it. It shows everything from phrases used to find your site through to pages it can"€™t distinguish or access through internal and external links.
Why is it important?
With Google accounting for over 90% of searches in the UK and many other European countries, any insights that Google provides about the effectiveness of your website are worth reviewing. Google Webmaster Tools alerts you to how Google sees your website & alerts you to problems it finds..
Online businesses often overlook the basic aspects of natural search management, but with this simple interface you can quickly see if you are ticking all the boxes.
About this marketers guide
The name "€œGoogle Webmaster Tools"€ is unfortunate since it suggests it"€™s just a…
My thoughts on planning your Christmas/New Year marketing campaigns
Value: [rating=5]
Our commentary: I would imagine most of you are cursing me at this moment in time and I cannot say I blame you, I mean, blogging about Christmas in October!! It shouldn't be allowed!
Unfortunately as marketers we need to be focussing on Christmas and New Year activity & campaigns now.
Every year we see the number of online sales for businesses grow and despite Global recessions my current bet is that the online sales figure will do the same again this year!
Timely preparation is key, not only for Christmas sales but also to free up time during November / December for focus to be put towards the start of a new year without the distractions of Christmas campaigns. Below I have outlined a top level view on what you should start…
Google Issue New SEO Starter Guide
Value: [rating=5]
Our commentary: In the past some people would have likely killed to get some insights about Google, from Google. Over the years and especially in 2010 Google has started to engage with its market / audience making it easier for webmasters, online marketers and the likes to be kept up-to-date (blogs) find information easily and ask questions to "experts". Google have recently launched their updated starter guide to SEO covering everything from structuring your website through to promoting & analysing.
Marketing implications: As with all starter guides there is a tendency if you already work in the industry to gloss over it or assume you already know it. Personally, I think this is always the wrong move but especially so when Google of all people issue such a guide. Whatever stage you are at with your SEO skills, whether its launching your very first website or…
Targeting competitive keyterms with links to specific pages - Distilled
Value: [rating=5]
Our commentary: Creating links from related sites with specific anchor text to a relevant page on your website feels like one of the most obvious parts of SEO, but there are some great tips here to refine it.
However, it's hard to resource, so due to the extra effort required it is overlooked. While this article focuses on why link building to targeted pages will help you on your competitive terms, do not forget the long tail. You will not need anywhere near the number of links to each of the tail term pages to secure top spots.
Marketing implications: Having read the article have a think about the following best practices:
Current back link analysis
Is your anchor text specific or is it all my brand & "click here"?
Are your links targeting specific pages on your website or do they mostly point to…
